US Patent No. 6,818,886. Detection method. Inventor: Kurt Tiefenthaler. Assignee: Artificial Sensing Instruments.

This invention consists of detection systematics in which integrated optical chemo- and biosensorics are combined with mass spectrometry in a desorption. The desorption step releases the molecules from the surface of the sensor chip. The mass spectrometer measures the masses and/or degree of ionization of the molecules. The invention further increases detection sensitivity as well as the security of detection.